"Movies you loved on first viewing but have come to hate"
This post is inspired by "Notorious". Was so hyped when it came out and enjoyed watching it so much in a BK theater that it took subsequent viewings to realize how incredibly white washed the story was. The biggest travesty of all with that movie would have to be how Angelic and Wise Puffy made himself out to be in the movie that he, ahem, executive produced.
I think alot of Academy Award Winning Films would have to be mentioned in this discussion: Crash, American Beauty, Dances With Wolves, Driving Miss Daisy.
I don't know if those films are bad films that hoodwinked us on first viewing or rather once they won the Oscar their was more scrutiny and the realization that the movie wasn't THAT good.
6. "it was about #1stWorldProblems before we self-consciously mocked" In response to Reply # 4
and at least for me, it was THE movie that really helped illustrate the myopic nature of suburban existential malaise.
was great on first viewing, and I still think it's an extremely well written, well acted, well shot, and well put together film. but when you watch it repeatedly, you realize the floating plastic bag really isn't a metaphor for shit, and the real signal it sends is that there are problems in the world besides what's just happening on your block.
13. "Don't be scared to re-watch Eastern Promisese" In response to Reply # 8
I just saw it for a second time (in theaters) a few weeks ago and not only did it hold it up, it was better.
As for History of Violence, I've only seen it once. I agree that on the surface it seems a little hokey, but I think there is tons of subtext there. I listened to Viggo Mortensen speak for close to 2 hours and he spoke almost exclusively about Cronenberg and how deceptively simple his films were and he's really peppering them with levels upon levels of meaning, etc. Really interesting stuff.
16. "It's been a while since I've seen them" In response to Reply # 10
But for some reason the dialogue started to bug the shit out of me, and the movie felt very flat to me. A lot of it was cool, interesting or funny shit the first time became dumb with later viewings.
Of course it is meant to be Camp, extremly over the top. I loved it at first, thrill gone later.
7. "Virgin Suicides, Donnie Darko" In response to Reply # 0
Virgin Suicides is alluring at first with its style + theme, but if you re-watch closely it becomes apparent that the style is extremely helter skelter and the movie is just "trying shit" in the hopes that something works. there's no cohesive motif or style when put all together, and the central theme seems watered down + confused for it.
Donnie Darko I imagine I don't need to explain. good at first, and actually I've come to appreciate its flaws as the hype around it has died down (it's an extremely cute, clever, original indie film, but yeah ... the hype ...) but yeah, my initial impression of that movie has changed drastically over time.
11. "American History X" In response to Reply # 0 Tue Apr-10-12 02:29 PM by Madvillain 626
Not that I LOVED it on first viewing, but I definitely hated it by the second. Just gets really cheesy and after-school-special in second viewing. I mean how goofy is that basketball scene on subsequent viewings?
------------------------------- If life is stupendous one cannot also demand that it should be easy. - Robert Musil
44. "to be fair, i liked norton's performance, NOT the film..." In response to Reply # 11
..i think norton's tranformation was what juiced the film
*not the transformation his character makes in the movie, but the fact that nobody expected to see norton so heartless & violent compared to other roles he'd taken previously.
14. "Yo. THE SIXTH SENSE. Holy SHIT. That movie is fucking awful." In response to Reply # 0 Tue Apr-10-12 09:32 PM by The Analyst
I just watched it on Saturday for the first time probably 12 years. (It came out 13 years ago.) I was in middle school then. At the time, I thought it was great.
This time? That shit was borderline Lifetime Movie of the Week status. From the abysmal production values to the horrendously overbearing and sappy score to the borderline-corny performances and the gaping flaws in basic logic, I hated this fucking movie. It makes me want to rewatch Unbreakable (which I remember liking throughout high school) to see how it aged.
HJO is amazing. so is Toni Collette. the scene in the car near the end with the story about the grandmother attending the dance recital...that shit is GREAT.
19. "best leave those alone." In response to Reply # 17
I tried watching Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves (Costner) and Willow a few years ago...good God. felt like the Ludovico technique scene in A Clockwork Orange.
75. "This is why I refuse to watch Sixteen candles again." In response to Reply # 19
This movie along with Flash Gordon, the Wiz and Fright Night were my absolute favorites as a kid and I want my memories preserved. I already fucked up Flash Gordon. I can't bear to ruin the others
21. ""Pump up the Volume"" In response to Reply # 0
First time I saw it when I was a junior in high school: "Wow, this movie really speaks to me. Fuck high school! Fuck grown ups! Fuck the establishment!"
Watching it again a few years later: "Wow, this is so fucking lame."
29. "You know what kills me about this movie?" In response to Reply # 22
Is that it's so barely better than your standard h'wood movie with such great source material. You get such a great start, and then don't go far with it. When you compare it to a film like FIGHT CLUB, you'll see what I mean.
"Your current frequencies of understanding outweigh that which has been given for you to understand." Saul Williams
66. "I re-watched it pretty recently and still really dug it..." In response to Reply # 23 Fri Apr-13-12 11:36 AM by The Analyst
I usually enjoy existentialism/religious-skepticism, so maybe that's all that keeps drawing me to it. Jons gets all the best lines, but I still like the conflict that Antonius has between being skeptical yet being too scared to fully embrace his skepticism.
Maybe if you pointed out some of your qualms, I could look for them next time I watch it.
28. "welcome to my first viewing, buddy lol" In response to Reply # 27
I think all of Nolan's works suffer the closer you look. I was about to say Memento, but in truth I had switched from liking that moving to disliking it about 2/3 of the way through first time I saw it. I watched it again for some reason or another -- oh yeah, a girlfriend was in to it -- and knowing the direction of the reverse narrative removed the element of suspense, leaving me just with the acting / photography / script, and it was PAINFULLY obvious that shit was a one trick pony (the gimmick of a reverse narrative).
so yeah -- anybody who rates Nolan as an auteur, I'm left to wonder -- do they EVER watch auteur films twice? cuz his shit is veneer, no depth.
42. "oh I liked Prestige, haven't re-watched for fear of that changing lol" In response to Reply # 36
Memento, though? you're gonna have to spell that out to me.
I'm aware there's a global theme of "live in the moment," but I think you can get the same type of "wisdom" + "insight" from your average DIY skate video, i.e. the theme is so shallow itself as to be unnoteworthy (and that's what soured me at the end of the 1st viewing when he has his monologue at the wheel -- I was like that's it? that's all? find happiness by living in the moment? I WANT TWO HOURS BACK!!). besides that I just saw a simply plotted thriller that only becomes interesting when you find a way to play that plot in reverse.
58. "What exactly are we supposed to be saying?" In response to Reply # 53 Fri Apr-13-12 02:15 AM by ZooTown74
You probably think we're supposed to be composing essays full of compelling and "convincing" arguments as to why we dig Nolan's films.
But the thing is, whatever we type won't make a difference; you'll just continue using "ironic" quotes while striking thinly-veiled contrarian poses under the guise of "objective criticism."
So, no thanks.
EDIT: And actually, jigga is spot-on with his assessment. Be pissy and mad at me all you like -- and take your little shots at my intelligence as much as you need to -- but I really don't see what's "shit" about what he's saying.
60. "Exactly. I'm done trying to convince cats to see the subtle stuff." In response to Reply # 58
& I'm not trying to be on some "they just don't get it tip" either
I've rewatched all of Nolan's material & always pick up on underlying material I might've completely missed this first time or just didn't grasp completely. I don't know how he does it since it's all there on the initial viewing as well.
It's fascinating for me but if others can't see it that's on them.
61. "it's fascinating to me y'all see shit lol" In response to Reply # 60
>It's fascinating for me but if others can't see it that's on >them.
I'm not calling y'all stupid, I'm actually kinda curious what's interesting about the movie to you. but y'all don't feel like sharing, so I'mma keep on keeping on.
67. "Independence Day is a great example" In response to Reply # 30
I don't know how I missed how cliched and cheezy that movie was first go round.
Maybe because it was one of the first modern movies to blow up a lot of ish.
********** "Hey, man, salute to all the beautiful doctors, everybody that�s researching and helping find cures. Salute to everyone who�s finding cures to diseaaaases. Everybody that�s aiding the people. The silent, beautiful American people that are worki
54. "I know I can't watch it again" In response to Reply # 45 Thu Apr-12-12 10:43 PM by lfresh
And I enjoyed it the first time
~~~~ When you are born, you cry, and the world rejoices. Live so that when you die, you rejoice, and the world cries. ~~~~ You cannot hate people for their own good.
73. "dialogue is *real* corny" In response to Reply # 71
and the narration lifted directly from the comic is unbearable. the point of moving pictures is to tell without saying -- it's the big difference between cinema and books. as stated, after the style and Jessica Alba's peak wears off, you get bored quickly.
okaycomputer Member since Dec 02nd 2002 8090 posts
Fri Apr-13-12 11:20 AM
65. "This is a great post" In response to Reply # 0
American History X American Beauty Donnie Darko
all on my list. If I had access to my DVDs right now I could probably roll out 30 more.
The funny thing is that these are pretty much the movies responsible for turning me from 'someone who watched movies with his friends' into 'someone who cared much more about movies than the people around him.' So for that I will always have a bit of love for them.
A History of Violence has always sucked though. Glad to see people are coming around on that one.
84. "This might be sacrilegious ..." In response to Reply # 0
... but I'm gonna go with the Godfather part I. Ok, wait, that's not entirely accurate since I don't *hate* it. It's just the one that sticks out in my mind for dropping from one of my tip top favorites to more like a movie that I like well enough. I still hold part II in high regard. It's just that I think part I could've been so much better if they let Michael's character develop with more nuance.
87. "RE: How much more nuance did you want? What were you looking for?" In response to Reply # 86
Well, the issue for me is there's really just that one scene where the camera focuses on Michael as he's seated and in that moment he's transformed from the war hero into a bad ass. What was interesting to me is how Michael was initially an outsider in the family, a bit aloof and a-hole-ish, but also perhaps more on the straight and narrow. It would've been cool to see that person struggle a bit more with becoming the center of this organized crime family. Instead, he just flips between the two in a single scene.
But you gotta give up for Marlon Brando and the cast overall. And then you got part 2 which is really cool.
88. "that's not the scene where michael flips though" In response to Reply # 87
the scene where he goes to the hospital and realizes the hit on the don is about to go down is when he flips, he even tells his father "I'm with you now, pop. I'm with you." the scene with the camera focusing in on michael in the chair is when he asserts himself within the family, but he had already started down that road in the hospital scene.
and michael does struggle with going down that road and entering that world. when he meets with sollozzo at the restaurant to kill him, he pauses for a moment before he comes out of the bathroom with the gun, pats his hair down and gathers himself up before returning to the table. Then when he sits back down sollozzo starts talking but michael's not even listening, he's staring ahead with his eyes darting back and forth & you can see the anxiety building up as he gets himself ready to shoot them. then after he kills them, instead of dropping his arms to his sides and letting the gun slip out of his hand discreetly while walking out calmly like clemenza told him, he kind of rushes out the door and flips the gun away awkwardly. all of that shows what it takes for michael to go through with the hit and go down that road, he doesn't just stroll in there and calmly gun them down like a cold-blooded killer because that's not his nature. it takes alot for him to go from college-boy war-hero to mafioso killer and that scene in particular does a great job of portraying that. the nuance in michael's character development is really one of the strongest aspects of the movie.
89. "I also don't consider Michael on the straight and narrow before" In response to Reply # 87
I think Michael joined the military not because of any moral high ground but he was more motivated of doing his own thing. It was clear Sonny would be running things and working under Sonny didn't really appeal to him.
Remember when he tells the Lucci Bracci story in the beginning? I don't think he was embarrassed at all by that story. He told it as coldly and dispassionately as he would come to run the family.
********** "Hey, man, salute to all the beautiful doctors, everybody that�s researching and helping find cures. Salute to everyone who�s finding cures to diseaaaases. Everybody that�s aiding the people. -Lil B
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